Information-indicator.



T. M- BRUDE.

INFORMATION INDICATOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 26. 1916.

Patented Mar. 12, 1918.

THOMAS BRUDE, OF WINNETKA, ILLINOIS.

INFORMATION-INDICATOR.

Specification-of Letters Patent. Patented Mar. 12, 1918.

Application filed May 26, 1916. Serial No. 100,040.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS M. BRUDE, a citizen of the United States,residing at \Vinnetka, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in connection with Informa-Lion-Indicators, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactspecification.

The invention relates to information indicators, and more particularlyto such indicators in connection with geographical, geological,astronomical,biographicalmaps and statistical and other charts on whichclothcovered, glass, metal or other suitable tacks, pin or signals areused in various colors to indicate points on maps to designate someparticular information in connection with same, of which the color ofthe tacks or pins is a code.

One of the objects of my invention is to supplement and intensify thelimited statistics and information formerly possible by the use of tacksand maps alone.

Another object is to facilitate the visualizing of results or thesupervising of salesmen on maps, charts, etc.

Another object is to provide simple information indicating members whichmay be releasably connected to tacks or the like and which may bereadily applied and withdrawn, but which are not susceptible toaccidental displacement.

Another object is, to provide an information indicating combinationadapted to meet the various commercial requirements.

These and other objects are accomplished by providing a suitable map orchart, tacks, or the like, associated therewith to indicate somedefinite information, and suitable releasably connected membersassociated with said tacks to indicate further definlte information.

The invention is illustrated im the accompanying sheet of drawings, inwhich Figure 1 is a view of my information indicating combination, theoffice map such as commonly used in oflices to designate the territorycovered being shown in plan view, and the associated tacks and otherinformation indicating members being shown in per spective for the sakeof clearness;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the ordi- I nary (colored) tack used inconnection with thesemaps, the head of which tack, being round or flat,is either cloth-covered in various colors, or of glass, or metals invarious colors;

Fig. 3 is a perspective View of my improved information indicating ringor signal which is adapted to be releasably locked on the tacks inquestion;

Fig. 4 is a perspective View of a tack and ring, the latter having justbeen passed over the head of the tack; and

Figs. 5 and 6, respectively, are perspective views of other informationindicators used with tacks either alone or in combination with-therings.

The Various novel features of my invention will be apparent from thefollowing description and drawings, and will be particug larly set forthin the appended claims.

It is common practice for sales managers to observe the movements andresults of visits of salesmen by the use of maps or charts and tackshaving heads of diiterent colors.

In general use the maps, such as the one shown in Fig. 1, are usuallydivided into sales territories, the dili'erently colored tacksindicating different classes of accounts sold in a town. A checked tackmight indicate that a new agencyforthe products sold by a concern hadjust been opened up in that town. A black tack would indicate anestablished agency. A red tack would indicate a dealers town in whichordinary products are sold, but that no agency is established for thefull line of products. low tack would indicate that a special class ofaccounts, such as jobbers, etc., are being sold regularly. A white tackwould indicate a rospective town.

here it is necessary to check up the calls of the salesmen in the townsin which business is already established, it has been necessary to use aburdensome system, either by inserting another tack denoting a call, orby using a duplicate map in which tacks are placed when salesmen reportcalls. A black tack would indicate one call, a red tack two calls, a;yellow tack three calls in a town, etc. This duplication of maps and theuse of two or three tacks at a single spot is very unsatisfactory, tosay the least.

To overcome these objections I have provided in the first place maprings or signals maps, by means of which a double, treble, quadruple, oreven greater, number of pur- A yelto be used in connection with tacks onthe can be obtained through the use of maps now in force. For example, aring placed over the head of a tack would indicats a call. The.different colors of the rings would indicate results of these calls. Ablack ring could be placed over the head of 'a black agency tack toindicate that a call was made in the town and that asale was made to theagency. If an agency sale was made in a red dealers town, a-yellowjobbers town, or a white prospective town, a black would be placed overthe-tack which would indicate that a new agency ha been sold and thatthe color of the tack should be changed when shipment of order V placedover a white tack, would indicate that a dealer' had been sold in a townin which no previous business existed. A yellowring would be used in thesame manner. A white ring would indicate that merely a call was made ina town without any sale. Therefore, a white ring over a black tackwould. I mean that an agency was called on but that no sale was made.The same would be true placed over a red dealers tack, yellow jobberstack, a checked new agency tack, or, a white rosp'ective tack. Y

Whi e many business-firms have various kinds, of business in eyery town,theyusually place thetack on the town in questlon'to indictate the mostimportant business being? sold. However, in the application of theserings, and where it is not essential to follow the salesmen, the ringscould be used to supplement the rnost important business in the town, asindicated in" the tack, and by placing a ring over the head of each tackto indicate the naturev of [other accounts sold 1 there;

Some, firms place different colored tacks in towns on maps toindicatewhich salesman haS'jHI'ISdlCtiOII over the town in question.

In such a-case a black tack would mean that salesman 'fNo." 1 callsthere, and a redtack jtacks stuck into maps, {great importance that' therings be readily placed onto or over the tacks and readily thatsalesman. No... 2 calls there. This is particularly true of some'kindsof business where salesmen are not' given defined territories. j

Inv the use of rin'" I in connection with harts,"etc.-, it-is ofwithdrawn therefrom,- andatthe same time it is of greater importancethat the rings must be sufiiciently locked or confinedto the tacks toprevent their accidental shaking or jarring therefrom. Therefore, I havepreferably provided rings 10 made of any suitable flexible material,such, for example, as

- celluloid, paper, or rubber, having their centralopening 11smaller'than the heads 12 of the tacks 13.- To readily pass these rings10 over the heads of the tacks, the rings are slit, preferably radially,as at 14. To lock, or to further confine the rings to' the tacks, theyare provided with inwardly extending radially arranged pointedprojections 15 adjacent the slits 14. The projections 15 positivelyprevent accidental withdrawal of rings by engaging the under side of theheads 12, as shown in Fig. 4. In this manner it is seen that the ringsmay be re I leasabl'y secured or locked to the tacks, and

due to their resiliency will always spring into their normal conditionor form when free so to do. The rings may be said to be snapped onto thetacks in an embracing manner and likewise snapped ofi. p

In the application of these rings,the different; colored rings mightindicate in which towns,,agencies, dealers, or other special ac--counts, are located. In such case diamondshaped or heart-shapedv ringsor annular mentary calls,',or'='vice versa. These members may-be ofi-various shapes and may serve to indicate various kinds of information.They are maderelatively small tocovera minitransparent. Of course,suitable pinsmay beu'sed insteadof tacks.

members 16 or'17, as shown in Figs. '5. and 6, might indicate the natureof accounts and the round ringsmight ind1cate the supplemum amount ofspace," and preferably are There maybe various modifications of my"invention, and it is my intention to cover all which 'dovnot involve adeparture from the spirit and scope thereof as set forthfin the followinclaims. 7 e I Y What claim as new is:

FL-In aninformation indicating system,

the combination of an information indicating member having anenlarg'ed'portion, and a removable information indicating member havingan aperture smaller than the enlarged portion of said first mentionedmemher, and having a slit'whereby the removable member' may be placedover the enlarged member. 1

: 2. ,.In an informationindicating system, the combination of atack,.and'- an informaportion of the first .mentioned 7 tion indicatingmemberjhaying-an aperture smaller than the head of the tack and havingplaced over the head of'thetack. 1

a slit "Whereby -the member may be In an information indicating s stem,

the combination of at'ack, and an in ormation indicatin member having anaperture smaller than-t e head of the tack and havmg aslitwhereby'themember may be placed 1,25e,eee at;

over the head of the tack, said member also having a projection to coactwith the tack head to prevent accidental Withdrawal of the member fromthe tack,

4. In an information indicating system, the combination of aninformation indicat ing member having an enlarged portion, and aremovable indicating member having an open center smaller than theenlarged 10 portion of said first mentioned member, the

removable member being made of flexible material and having a radialslit to permit it to be placed over the enlarged portion of the firstmentioned member and having an inwardly extending projection to co-actwith said enlarged portion to prevent accidental removal from said firstmentioned member.

THOMAS M. BRUDE.

